Oren's 'Plan B': Unilateral Withdrawal

Ex-Ambassador in US says he is not on the same page as Netanyahu when he recommends 'Disengagement 2'.

By Gil Ronen

First Publish: 2/26/2014, 11:10 AM

Michael Oren (illustrative)

Flash90

Former Ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, thinks that Israel should consider beating a unilateral retreat from the biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria, if negotiations with the Palestinian Authority (PA) fail, and the PA heads to the UN with a unilateral bid for statehood.

In interviews with several Israeli media sources, Oren said that the lessons from the 2005 Gaza Disengagement and the 2000 retreat from Lebanon need to be learned, and that a future unilateral withdrawal from Judea and Samaria should be handled differently. He explained that Israel must not relinquish its security interests, and must make clear that a border dispute remains, between itself and the future “Palestinian state.”

Asked by IDF Radio if his statement is coordinated with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Oren answered in the negative. He added, however, that he held similar views before Netanyahu appointed him Ambassador.

Oren calls his idea Plan B.

Speaking to Maariv, he refused to sketch the boundaries of his imagined Palestinian state, but explained that there should be “as many Palestinians as possible in the Palestinian state, and as many Israelis as possible in Israel.”

"If the Palestinians turn to the UN and succeed in obtaining the required majority [for statehood], then the Palestinian state will already exist,” he explained, “and that is why I suggest that we make our move and determine our border. They have a gun named Plan B. It is important that they see that we have a weapon like that, too.”